Chapter Six

The Genin Exam was approaching.

One could feel stirrings of it in the air. All of a sudden the tests came more often and stricter, the grades became much higher-stakes, and an excitement and tension hung in the air. Ino, Tenten, and Hinata were not any more immune to all of it than the rest - both enthusiastic and terrified of failing, they went through the same review tests as everybody else.

At the same time, Tenten, Ino, and Hinata shared their hobbies with one another.

Hinata introduced Ino and Tenten to books, music, and movies. They had movie nights and slumber parties at Tenten's place, traded opinions on books, and even went to their first concert together.

Tenten brewed her friends special herbal supplements and teas, and introduced them to things like astrology, tarot reading, and fortune telling cards with enormous enthusiasm.

Ino took them all out shopping, took them by her Mom's flower shop, and had them participate as a massage receiver, for example, in her ASMR videos.

They were not only preparing at the Academy, they were also having fun outside the Academy together.

Their private training was now a process of refinement.

They integrated all their fighting skills together, individually against each other, and then collectively against Kurenai.

In the first exercise, Kurenai was merciless when it came to their perfection. Tenten had to use flawless genjutsu to disguise her impending explosions and weapons attacks. Ino had to use perfect genjutsu to lure her victim into coming within her control range. Hinata specialized in using genjutsu to make it look like she was Jyuuken attacking from one place; meanwhile, she snuck around and really attacked from a different place. Her Byakugan had to be precise and her all-tenketsu defenses had to be impenetrable. And, of course, their strength and speed, helped by refined chakra control, had to be frightening to an ordinary Academy student.

But Kurenai also demanded flawless teamwork - when they all fought her together. She would take them through team maneuvers and help them integrate their skills with each other's, emphasizing the importance of each person knowing exactly what the others on their team could do and being able to respond with that in mind.

To that end, they had a usual strategy for fighting Kurenai. The girls would match Kurenai's genjutsu with their own. Then Tenten would let off an explosive tag nearby and, jarred, Kurenai would move instinctively away - Ino would be able to sense out where her Sensei was and would shoot out a ninjutsu to control her movements. Finally, Hinata would move in for a Jyuuken assault.

It was a series of movements they practiced countless times. "Out on the field, knowing where on the team you fit and how to use that could well save your life," Kurenai promised solemnly.

She talked like it just mattered in the abstract no matter what team they were placed on. But secretly, Kurenai already suspected the score.

Each girl had formed a life for herself.

Ino was content and proud in herself, confident with who she was, both as a strong kunoichi and as a curvier woman. She got along well with her parents, and valued Kurenai-sensei and her two closest friends. Her popular snobbishness and silly fangirl rivalry was a thing of the past. Instead, she stuck up for others she felt were being wronged in some way, and regretted her past self.

Tenten was happy learning to cook and clean, having a place to decorate and call her own, filled with little witchy remedies and plants. She also gained great satisfaction out of knowing she was a ninja clan founder. For the first time in her life, she had an official surname and a set of skills, belonged among Konoha ninja.

Hinata was the heiress of her clan, Neji her branch family head guard. She had secretly decided to do away with branch practices, but openly was polite, graceful, and diplomatic - yet quietly dangerous when faced in a fight. Her father was proud of her. Even her sister had begun to relax cautiously, as she saw with surprise that time had passed and Hinata had not sealed her yet.

So perhaps, even for Hanabi and Hinata, there was hope.

The Hokage called the Yamanaka, the Nara, the Akimichi, and the Hyuuga clan heads into his office one afternoon. Kurenai walked in - and paused, seeing them all standing there staring at her.

"Ah, Kurenai. Yes, I requested you. Come in," said the little old man with the wood pipe who was Hokage pleasantly.

Kurenai walked forward and stood, proud and firm, at attention.

"I have gathered you all here today," said the Hokage, "because I have made a decision concerning upcoming team placements, and I thought you all deserved to hear why.

"Yamanaka Ino, Hyuuga Hinata, and Hanakiri Tenten have come together under Yuuhi Kurenai and improved themselves in ways I could never have anticipated. They have been incredible for each other, and I do not say that lightly. They are a well oiled fighting machine. They practically are a team already.

"Therefore, I'm going to break convention. I'm going to put the Hyuuga heiress in an active duty team beside a girl who is a relative unknown. And I am going to set the Yamanaka heiress with them, instead of with the Nara and Akimichi as has become custom."

Hiashi paused, and bowed his head. "Hinata has a deep-seated need to prove herself and she would never forgive me if I denied her active duty," he said simply. "Her team has indeed been good for her, as has Yuuhi-san. It is unconventional, which I usually disapprove of, but since it has so far yielded such good results I see no problem," he said with dignity.

Kurenai and the Hokage both relaxed minutely. That was the hardest person taken care of. It helped, probably, that Hiashi still had a second daughter (as awful as that sounded).

Inoichi shrugged. "Honestly, I expected it," he admitted. "Based on Ino's stories and training, that team could become legendary. They've been in the making for years."

Only the Nara and the Akimichi seemed surprised. "Who will be with Shikamaru and Chouji, then?" asked Shikako thoughtfully, rubbing his chin.

"Aburame Shino," the Hokage answered. "Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura, and Uzumaki Naruto will then be teamed up together."

Shikako paused and then shrugged. "Well," he said, "it's troublesome, but you know best, Hokage-sama." Chouza smiled and nodded in acceptance.

The Hokage then turned to Kurenai. "And will you, Kurenai, choose to take on this team?"

After an introduction like that?

"Of course," she said warmly. "With all my heart. They have the makings for an excellent team. Besides." Her eyes gleamed mischievously, as her ambition of years before played out in front of her, that ambition formed that day outside the Academy girl's bathroom. "I kind of like the idea of an all-woman team."

Author's Note: And that's a wrap!

This marks the end of book one. I will post a note up on here telling all my lovely followers when book two has been posted to my author page.

Thanks for following me along the ride!